A British hero of the fight for freedom in Iran

Lord Slynn of Hadley tried to alert the world to a terrible betrayal of Iran's
main hope of a democratic alternative to the murderous Tehran regime, says
Christopher Booker.

By Christopher Booker

4:46PM BST 11 Apr 2009

It is not often this column commends a passionate supporter of the EU but Lord Slynn of Hadley, a former judge on the European Court of Justice who died last week, deserves tribute for his part in an admirable fight for justice. He played a leading role in the long battle to get the People’s Mujahideen of Iran (PMOI), the main hope of a democratic alternative to the murderous tyranny in Tehran, taken off the list of terrorist organisations outlawed by the UK Government and the EU.

The purpose of banning the PMOI was solely to appease the Teheran regime, which regards the National Council of Resistance of Iran, of which the PMOI is the main component, as its chief enemy. Repeatedly the British Government and the EU tried to flout rulings by their respective courts that there was no evidence that the PMOI were terrorists and that the ban was unlawful. Finally, thanks not least to Lord Slynn, both governments were forced to lift the ban.

Now, however, desperate for vengeance, the Tehran regime has turned its attention to the PMOI’s last “safe haven” in the Middle East, Camp Ashfraf in the Iraqi desert 60 miles north of Baghdad. Where there was once just arid sand now stands a thriving modern town, with four Olympic-size swimming pools and houses in tree-lined streets, home to 3,600 peace-loving Iranians.

After the occupation, the people of Ashraf, having given up their weapons, lived under a guarantee of US protection. But in January this year, the Americans handed over that “protection” to the Iraqi government which, under what appears to be a murky deal with Tehran, has been bringing every kind of pressure, short of force, to close Ashraf down. The inhabitants have been denied supplies, medical attention or contact with the outside world, and are terrified that they will be handed over to Tehran, many to be tortured or executed as tens of thousands of PMOI supporters have been in the past.

Were Lord Slynn, who twice visited Ashraf, still alive, he would again be playing a leading role in trying to alert the world to the terrible betrayal which now seems in the making.